11 January 2016

Music Can Help Build Your Child’s Multiple Intelligence

The relationship between music and child development is a widely discussed subject in the circles of early childhood music therapists. Dr. Liz Inciong (a pediatrician, Fellow of the Philippine Pediatric Society and an Associate Active Consultant of the Institute of Pediatrics and Child Health at St. Luke’s Medical Center for 18 years) and Teacher Marah Vasquez-Estuesta of Kindermusik International are among those who have scientific understanding of the matter and strongly support it.

Through extensive interaction and training with young minds, they have discovered the role music plays in a child’s cognitive development is anchored on the theory of Multiple Intelligence. According to this theory, a child’s intellectual capacity isn’t solely based on and measured by verbal or mathematical skills. On the contrary, it is in fact far more comprehensive – covering social, music, kinesthetic and visual intelligence as well.

As Dr. Inciong states, “Music plays an important role in the development of a child’s various modes of intelligence, specifically for mental, physical and social aspects. Music helps them seek patterns in their environment, which allows them to easily recall words, phrases, even in foreign languages. They become more perceptive to sound and develop into astute listeners.”

The Sound of Music: How It Impacts Child Development

Dr. Inciong shares, “The concept of multiple intelligence creates a profound effect on how educators can approach teaching for their students. It allows us to tailor instruction to each child, to provide a wholistic approach to learning.”

Children as young as four can absorb the potential educational benefits of listening to music that are known to make an impact during these sensitive developmental years. Things such as speech and language development, motor and rhythmic coordination and even social skills are honed through early exposure to music.

Kindermusik class with Zack

But it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to teach your children how to play an instrument. While there’s little doubt that doing so helps their mental development, studies show that simply having children actively listen to songs is enough to help them reap the benefits of cognitive development and maybe even encourage them to pick up an instrument to learn.

“The right tempo and message aids in the development of neurophysiological distinctions between sounds that develop literacy, which tangibly results in better academic results,” says Teacher Marah.

M.I. Beats

To address this opportunity of harnessing music for learning, PROGRESS PRE-SCHOOL GOLD came up withe the first ever playlists, based on scientific research and practical applications, designed to help build Multiple Intelligence in the Philippines.

“As Early Childhood Music Educators, we have chosen the songs based on our first hand experience with the children. These songs were tried and tested with our students, were proven to have impact and were very appealing to them,” says Teacher Marah. “We curated one playlist each to help enhance Brain Smarts (mental development), Body Smarts (physical development), and People Smarts (Social and Emotional Development).”

To support Brain smarts, the team chose songs that highlight linguistic development through vocabulary building, phonemic awareness and vocal development as a way to develop oral language and speak rhythmically and expressively. For Body Smarts, song selections were anchored on music that can potentially help develop fine and gross motor skills. For People Smarts, songs focus on showing kids how to express their appreciation for friends and practicing basic social skills such as cooperation.

M.I. Beats is the first ever playlist specifically designed to help aid a child’s developmental process and provide modern moms with access to digital platforms that offer it. And to make it even easier for mothers to access this pioneering technology, PROGRESS PRE-SCHOOL GOLD is offering an exclusive opportunity for mothers to enjoy the exclusive M.I. Beats playlist for FREE!

For every 1.6kg can of PROGRESS PRE-SCHOOL GOLD, you get FREE access to the exclusive M.I. Beats Playlist on Spotify Premium for an entire month. Simply purchase the specially-marked cans to get the unique code, visit www.multipleintelligence.com.ph to register, fill up the necessary information and wait for the confirmation email.